Go East, old people, go East

Overlooking the St. John's Harbor. (Note: clicking any image will open

a larger version.)

Why Newfoundland?

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, probably doesn't leap to mind when you're sitting around trying to think of a vacation destination. For that matter, when you hear Newfoundland or Labrador, you probably think about dog breeds before you think about a Canadian province.

I'd like to tell you that I wanted to go there because I have ties to Canada -- my maternal grandfather hailed from Stratford, Ontario -- and wanted to explore the history of the land, beginning with the nation's eastern province. But, I'd be fibbing. I never knew my grandfather and only knew anything about his being Canadian from comments my mother used to make and a little bit of genealogical research my sister once did. Mom and Dad did take a trip to Stratford once, but I can't remember a thing they told me about the place.

No, my reason for picking St. John's has to do with television, specifically a show called "Republic of Doyle," that streams on the Hulu video service. Allan Hawco, a Canadian actor from Newfoundland, plays a private detective who, along with his family and a perky blonde police detective, solves crimes in St. John's. Hawco is from St. John's.

According to IMDB, the series was filmed in St. John's, and the show often features gorgeous views of the city. This made me think it might be a great place to visit. After convincing Sharon that this insight might well be accurate, we set about making plans. I feared, however, from some of my early research, that we might not find enough to do, and while looking at a variety of Internet sites, I discovered that Newfoundland is home to the only verified Viking site in North America.

We'd been faithful watchers of the "Vikings" TV series and had read a couple of books on Viking history, so I figured we might as well include a visit to the site in our trip, which would take care of a couple of days worth of sightseeing time. I'll talk about that more in a few days.

St. John's bills itself as the site of the oldest port in North America as well as the easternmost spot on the continent. This is true if you don't include Greenland as part of the continent, which it is from a geophysical standpoint because it is attached to the North American tectonic plate, but as you may have learned from the news, Denmark runs Greenland, and the residents have proclaimed they are the owners. So take your pick.

 It is the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador, which is considered to be one province comprising the island of Newfoundland and Labrador, the mainland part of the province. St. John's is also the largest city in the province.

Looking toward the entrance to the harbor. 

John Cabot "discovered" the area in 1497 while exploring on behalf of England's King Henry VII. The Vikings, or Norsemen, had established a village on the western coast of Newfoundland about 500 years earlier, but the presence of native peoples or the lack of knowledge that other peoples might have been there first has never stopped exploring nations from claiming a discovery. Norsemen, by the way refers to seagoing traders and sometimes farmers from Scandinavia. When these traders and farmers took to conquering and warring, they were then called Vikings, at least according to our guide at the Viking archaeological site.

Cabot found the harbor and surrounding area on the feast day of St. John the Baptist and named the place after the famous saint. The island he called Newfoundland because it was a new-found land. Clever, no?

By 1500 a vibrant fishing industry was in place, and before the end of the 16th century an English fishing captain established a base in St. John's. A few years later one Sir Humphrey Gilbert claimed the area for Elizabeth I, marking the beginning of the British empire, according to sign in the harbor area. The first year-round residents, called "Planters" -- fishermen and their families -- established a presence in 1620.

At least one sign in the city refers to St. John's as the oldest city in North America, and it may well be for Canada, but other cities also claim the title. You can decide for yourself.

As you might guess from this brief history, fishing was for many years the lifeblood of St. John's -- cod fishing more specifically. Cod were so numerous that even though other species are now the main focus of the fishing industry, for some in Newfoundland, "fish" and "cod" are synonymous, with other species being referred to by their actual name. Unfortunately, the area became overfished, and in 1992 the government declared a cod moratorium. Licenses and fish plants have been severely restricted, and inducements to leave the fishing industry were offered. Still, fishing provides more than a billion dollars to the economy, and almost 18,000 people, about 3 percent of the island's population, are employed in the industry.

Some of the fishing (and other types of) boats in the harbor.

Culinary note: Fish rule on St. John's menus, even for breakfast. At supper our first night, a group seated at a nearby table asked if the cod were fresh or frozen. The waiter took umbrage and let them know that not only was the fish fresh, that restaurant served the best fish in the city. Subsequently he gave much of his attention to us, even making sure our order came out before the other table's.

One of the common offerings is "cod tongue." Because cod don't have tongues, you might wonder what they're referring to. Cod tongue is the bit of somewhat gelatinous meat from the cod's lower jaw. One article I read explained that the rest of the fish was too valuable to waste, so fishermen would collect this portion for themselves. It is fried and served with scrunchions -- diced, deep-fried pork fatback or salt pork. Didn't eat the cod tongue but did have scrunchions. Tastes a lot like the fatty portion of your bacon.